Destined Queen of Ice and Snow
by Maledict Zashley
Summary: Elsa Queen, Anna Maiden, Hans Charming, and Kristoff Apprentice are only a handful of EAH's more interesting attendants. When one Rebel flips the script, these fairytales and others will find themselves on the path to a twisted story of love, capture, and identity. EAHxRotBTFD, but mostly EAHxFrozen.
1. Introduction

The tale of the Snow Queen is rather well-known in Ever After for its slow transition away from the original tale. Though the titular antagonist was once a rather neutrally regarded figure, her successors have managed to warp the characterization into something much more devious. Every generation, the hatred and fear spiraling within the Snow Queen grows, and every generation, more control over her powers and the snow-bees she so prizes is lost.

Some fear that these gradual changes will someday become so great that the tale of the Snow Queen disappears completely. Others say, "good riddance".

Two generations ago, there came yet another twist to the character of the Snow Queen. Instead of the one child needed to carry on her legacy, she bore a pair of twins.

The second-born looked to be the epitome of what a good winter princess should be. She bore white hair that clung to her head like icicles and eyes as versatile as the aurora borealis. The snow-bees were fond of her, and ice obeyed her every whim. The first-born, however, was not at all acceptable. Her hair was as brown as dry earth, her blue eyes the only saving grace on her totally mundane features. The snow-bees avoided her, and while she displayed talent in dealing with the cold, she had little luck in manipulating the plentiful snow around her.

The Snow Queen found herself in a panic. The intended heir to her throne, lacking in magic? The tale was ruined! Swiftly, she devised a plan, and the first-born child's memory was quickly erased before she was sent off on a trail of snow-bees, finally landing at some lucky peasant's doorstep in a long-standing kingdom by the name of Arendelle.

She grew up happily, poor in lifestyle but joyous at heart. Her adoptive mother always treated her right, though she was an older woman who had few of the resources she thought were needed to raise a child. That didn't stop the girl from growing up with a kind and loving spirit, having learned to help around the house soon after she was able to walk and getting a job the day she was eligible. She became an apprentice to a skilled sheepherder who was born into his business and proved to be a fast learner. Though he conditions weren't ideal and the pay wasn't outstanding, the girl was glad that she was able to do something.

One day, winter came brewing stronger than ever. Everyone was locked up inside of their houses, the sheep were tucked into the barn, and no one dared to travel outward. That is, with one exception. The brave young daughter of the Snow Queen, long ago abandoned and wiped of her ancestry, had gone into the post office and since then was on the move, taking letters and light cargo to whatever houses required them. The postmen and postwomen were extremely impressed with the girl's endurance and eventually gave the girl a very important letter. It was a message to be given to the Prince of Arendelle- a love letter sent by his betrothed.

The girl exited the post office, and immediately snowflakes frosted over her hair and shoulders. The castle was far, but the girl didn't rush to the location. She walked calmly through the thick and biting snow, feeling nothing more than the warmth of her own heart. By the time she reached the entrance, even her face was dappled with cold flakes, which particularly perched on her eyelashes and the tip of her nose. She knocked on the door, but to no avail. Perhaps the doorkeeper had gotten locked in his house due to the weather? Whatever the case, the girl found that she would need to take another route if she were to complete her mission.

She knew which window was the of the prince's room. She'd seen his head poking out when he was daydreaming, and more than once had his chamberlain come over to chastise him for leaving the window open. After a moment of thought, the girl took off her mittens, leaving her cold hands exposed. She tied them into a knot and threw them up at the window, watching as it hit the solid glass with a small _thud_ and fell down into icy oblivion. No answer. She did the same with her winter hat. No answer. Finally, she threw her wadded-up scarf at the window. A pale hand came over to unhook the latch, and the flaps of the window drew stiffly inward.

"Is someone there?" A voice called out, muffled by the wind and concealed by the snow.

"I am a shepherdess of Arendelle, Your Royal Highness," the girl called. "I come with a letter from your betrothed."

There was a pause, and the girl was about to repeat her phrase before she heard, "I will be at the door at once."

And so the girl went back to the door, and mere moments later the door was opened. There was not a servant standing before her, as the girl noted with surprise, but instead the prince himself, his blonde hair ruffled by the wind and his skin seeming even paler in the chill. The prince, too, seemed surprised, and was not nearly as good at hiding it. For the girl was almost entirely covered in snow, all but her eyes blocked by the clean crystals. He took the letter, thanked the girl, and invited her inside.

The girl agreed and chatted with the prince for a while, and the prince could tell from their brief conversation that the girl was very kind-hearted. The girl, too, saw goodness in the prince, and wished that she could stay all night. However, she realized with a start that she hadn't checked on her mother for a good while. Though the prince insisted she at least stay until the snowflakes were melted enough for him to truly see her, she had to politely decline, and her form soon dissolved into the falling snow.

The next morning, the sun truly became the town's saving grace. The world was at least somewhat warmer, and as the villagers moved about their business, so did a new rumor. Everyone in the town was convinced that the prince of Arendelle had called off the betrothal his parents had set up for him, and when probed, the gossipers would add that the prince claimed he had been visited by a beautiful young lass dressed in snowflakes. The girl was rather surprised to hear this but pretended to think nothing of it, not wanting to become a source of rumor herself. Her mother asked about her gloves, hat, and scarf, and the girl admitted that she'd left them outside of the prince's window but told her mother not to worry about them. She would have the sheepdog retrieve them for her as she went about her work.

The mother, however, was impatient. She sent her nephew to retrieve the girl's clothing beneath the prince's window. In the defrosting snow, however, he saw only the scarf, which he easily retrieved. The prince, who was daydreaming, opened the window and asked the boy what he was doing.

"I'm retrieving my cousin's scarf, Your Royal Highness."

"Who is your cousin?"

But the boy would not say, and he moved too swiftly for the prince to trail after him. The woman, seeing only the scarf, next asked the shepherd if he could retrieve the rest of the clothing. In the defrosting snow, he picked up the hat, which was all he saw. Again, the prince opened the window and asked the shepherd what he was doing.

"I'm retrieving my apprentice's hat, Your Royal Highness."

"Who is your apprentice?"

But the shepherd would not say, and he too was quick. The woman still longed for the gloves to return but had no one else to send, as her nephew and the shepherd had to return to their work, so she decided to wait for the sheepdog.

Of course, the prince was daydreaming once again. This time, he kept the window open and ready. When he saw a white-and-black-coated canine approaching, he looked down and watched as it gathered gloves in the bottom-most layer of the defrosting snow. Curious, he exited his room and went downstairs, set on following the dog. He was stopped by a couple of girls who claimed to be or know the snowflake-maiden, but the prince ignored them. He continued his pursuit and stopped at the door of a barn, watching as the dog entered through the slightly agape doorway. The prince stood outside for a long moment, seeming almost confused, before peeking in.

The girl, sitting on a bale of hay and clothed in a plain dress, was tending to one of the younger sheep before she saw the dog trot in. Giving it a pat on the head, she received the gloves and folded them into the pockets of her dress before looking up. Seeing familiar green eyes and blonde hair, she was startled, though not nearly so much as he. Her blue eyes were unmistakably those belonging to the girl who'd given him the letter.

"I've found you, Snowflake Maiden," the prince said as he entered.

"So you have, Your Royal Highness," the girl agreed, standing.

The two continued meeting from that point on, falling deeper in love. When the prince turned eighteen, he convinced his parents to let him marry the girl, aided by how they approved of her heart and beauty. The wedding was spectacular, and the girl was a loving queen, glad that she was better able to help her mother and those around her. And they all lived Happily Ever After.

* * *

"This happened only a few years before you were born, Princess Elsa."

The sixteen-year-old girl had to remind herself to stop fidgeting with her gloves, lest they slip too loose. Her posture was straight and steady, trained from years spent with a courageous private tutor, but the slight squint of her blue eyes and the barely existent biting of her pale lip revealed the platinum-haired girl's nerves. She was making her best effort to maintain eye contact with the chambermaid she'd spent the past several years thinking of as a second mother. "Gerda...why are you telling me this now?"

The woman sighed, seeming about as happy giving the news as the princess was receiving it. Unlike the princess, Gerda was standing, her hand coming to rest on the teen's shoulder. "Princess Elsa, you're part of a fairytale legacy. You need to know."

"But..." Elsa stopped herself from finishing the question. She'd grown rather certain that questions would get her nowhere. After all, they never did when she asked her parents about things, back when they were still alive.

"But why you, yes?" Gerda asked. At the princess's timid nod, she continued. "The current Snow Queen has no children. She is barren. And since you are the first-born of the first-born, it is your duty to take over your grandmother's destiny."

"All I know about the fairytale realm are things you've told me, Gerda, and all my life I've trusted your judgement..." Elsa said softly, sternly keeping herself from mumbling while still keeping a clearly uncertain and quiet tone. "But I can't just go to Ever After High. What about my sister?" Elsa swallowed, knowing very well that the excuse was invalid even in her own eyes. Her relationship with her sister had gone downhill ever since the accident, when Elsa had first seen herself as dangerous.

In truth, the last thing she wanted to do was to go to a school where she'd have to be surrounded by people and risk exposing herself. And that was without even considering the implications of her apparent destiny as an evil queen. She couldn't let herself think about that aspect, or else the cold crystals already spiraling down the legs of her polished, wooden chair would begin spreading across the floor in slippery fractals for what felt like the eight-hundredth time.

"You must, princess," Gerda asserted, though her voice was low and solemn. "Headmaster Grimm has already sent for you. To ease your concerns, your sister will be attending alongside you. After all, she's destined to become the next Snowflake Maiden."

Elsa sunk lower into her chair, her practiced grace failing her for the moment being. "So she's going to be a beautiful, kind-hearted girl with a Happily Ever After...and I'm going to cast evil destruction on everything I touch," she determined blankly, struggling to keep the ice on the ground around her from spreading just as much as she struggled to hold back the shaking of her body, which matched the quick flits of her anxious heart. She didn't have much success in either struggle.

Gerda sighed, pulling back. Her eyes were worried and sympathetic, but her mouth was pulled straight into a proper line. "I'll help you pack when you next call for me, princess. I must inform your sister of this." After a moment, she added, "I can omit the parts about her Snow Queen lineage and your own destiny, if you'd prefer."

"Yes, please," Elsa replied, sounding more pleading and urgent than she'd anticipated. "She can't know about my powers."

"As you wish, Your Royal Highness," Gerda said finally before exiting the room. Elsa forced herself up onto her feet and ran over to the lock the bedroom door, worried that her legs would betray her if she took too long. In the end, her legs betrayed her anyway, and ended up on her knees with her gloved hand still clinging to the doorknob. Putting her other hand up to her face, she barely took note of how the knob was soon frozen, the entire door not falling far behind. Now that she was alone, perfectly isolated and safe, she could let her feelings manifest- and God, she really couldn't have kept them back for another second. She was certain that she could keep her shocked and fearful emotions within the confines of her room, and they certainly filled every square inch of the allotted space that had so long ago become so forsaken by all but its owner and a select few castle staff.

Earlier in the conversation, Gerda had told Elsa why her parents were so afraid. They didn't know of her mother's lineage in the slightest, and in fact knew nothing of the fairytale world's existence, let alone anything anything related to magic beyond the wisdom of the trolls. But if her mother and father were truly as kind-hearted as described in the story of the Snowflake Maiden...why did they have to keep her away from the world? Was she really so frightening and threatening and _terrible_ that their loving hearts were repelled by the danger she caused?

"M-mom..." she murmured shakily to the air. Long hair draped over most of her face, the visible heat of her inconsistent breath puffing into the air through the space in between. "I-it's bad enough that you left us...but why did you have to leave me with _this_?"

* * *

**A/N: This is an AU, of course. It's partially inspired by a Frozen/EAH crossover picture I saw on Tumblr and partially inspired by a very strange dream I had last night. Also, Gerda is the name of the female servant in Frozen, though I've made it to where she's both the female servant in Frozen and the most recent Gerda from The Snow Queen.**

**In the next chapter, we have some actual EAH characters! ...Well, maybe.**

**Disclaimers: EAH belongs to Mattel.**

**Frozen belongs to Disney.**

**I made the story of the Snowflake Maiden myself because I needed an excuse to incorporate Anna into the fairytale world. Yes, it's far too pleasant of a story to be an actual fairytale, but there's a reason for that.**

******************Thank you for reading! R&amp;R if that is what your True Heart desires.******************


	2. Arrival

"Oh, I just can't believe it, Kai!" a fourteen-year-old Anna beamed, a relentless smile stretched across her rounded face as her freckled cheeks lifted in excitement. Her hands moved hurriedly to fold the clothes on her bed, tucking them eagerly into a suitcase. "I'm actually going to leave the castle and go to school and meet people!" She paused for a moment at the thought, fingers still on the surface of one of many casual dresses. "Wow...I really _will_ get to meet people, huh? How strange!" Looking over her shoulder at the amused servant by the doorway of her room, she added, "N-not that you and Gerda aren't company enough! It's just so fun, meeting new friends! Well, at least, the idea of it is."

Anna sighed in delight, feet swinging as she sat down on the edge of her bed's pink sheets. One of her flats came halfway off her foot at the sheer velocity of the action, though she rectified the issue with a pale hand that moved nearly as quickly as her lips. "Does this look okay for a first day, 'book-to-school' outfit?" She asked, gesturing to the green-and-pink ensemble. It was plenty warm but still appeared more fitting of a spring festival than a school day in the early chills of winter. However, the racing of her thoughts was far too impatient to await Kai's answer, and the anxious girl continued. "I just want to make sure I don't look too weird, you know? Maybe the braids are a bit much..." she considered under her breath, fidgeting with the strawberry blonde pigtails. Then she ran a finger along the single whit streak of her hair, which melted into her left braid. "I wonder..."

"There's no need to worry, Princess Anna," Kai assured the girl. He paused for a moment, surprised that he'd actually gotten a word in edgewise. "Ever After High is a very diverse facility. You'll fit right in."

Anna had wrapped Kai a hug before he even realized she had stood up, creating yet another surprise for the servant. "Thanks, Kai. I sure hope so!" As quickly as she'd moved to hug Kai, she was back to packing. Kai had asked the princess multiple times if she required any assistance, but she'd politely rejected his help several times, feeling as though even packing for the occasion was something for her to treasure and savor. Instead, she'd asked him to stay and help her with any decisions regarding _what_ she should pack, and while Kai had little to offer in the realm of fashion, he hoped to be of some help.

"Let's see. I need something that's really Snowflake Maiden-y," Anna determined suddenly, rushing over to her wardrobe. "Hmm, too dark...too red...too flowery...aha!" Anna exclaimed as she triumphantly picked out a white-and-light-blue piece of attire. "Man, I can't believe I've still kept this. I haven't worn it since it's not really my style, but it could become my style, maybe," she rambled with a shrug, starting to fold it up. She smiled to herself as she put it into the suitcase. "The Snowflake Maiden...heh, I never thought I'd know what to do with my life, you know? My life's been a series of doors in my face, but now...now there's a place for me."

Finding the case as full as she could possibly make it, she struggled in tying its stubborn strings, persevering until it was closed. After a moment, her shoulders drew down. "There's just one teensy-weensy itty-bitty _little_ tiny part that I don't quite get."

"And what would that be?" Kai inquired.

"What is Elsa's legacy?" Anna asked, crossing her arms in speculation. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I love that she's coming with me, and I also love the off-chance that she might actually talk to me for an extended period of time again, but if I'm the Snowflake Maiden..." the strawberry blonde trailed off for a moment, a grimace coming to her face that eventually evolved into a look of horror. "Is she going to be my prince?!"

Kai shook his head without missing a beat. "No, princess. Princess Elsa will be participating in the story as your cousin, who retrieves the scarf below the prince's window."

Anna released a breath she was almost certain she hadn't been holding, relief flooding over her. "Oh, thank Odin. I mean, that's still kind of strange since the maiden and her cousin aren't blood-related, but it's _much_ better than the alternative. Then who _is_ my prince?"

"The future Prince of Arendelle shall come from one of Ever After's many Charming families," Kai explained. "There are many available princes who don't share in your bloodline."

Anna raised an eyebrow, mouth opening with another beckoning inquiry, but another's voice came more quickly. "Princess Anna, your carriage awaits!"

"Oh! Guess I should take my leave," Anna said, reaching her hand out to grasp the suitcase. After a moment, however, she first embraced Kai in another quick hug. "Love you, Kai," she said before dismissing herself, pulling her luggage out of the room. She was so eager in her movement, in fact, that her one of her flats unlodged itself yet again, this time falling completely off. She glared down at it for a moment, both of her arms to full to pick it up. She tried to nudge it back on with her feet alone, but Gerda called for her once again, this time more loudly. "C-coming!" she stammered, eyes narrowed at her shoe as she finally gave up. "Fine, stay at the castle, then," she muttered to it, continuing her way down the hall half-shoed.

For once, the door to the castle was open, and the light that flooded through it seemed like Heaven in Anna's wide blue eyes. She heard the chatter of peasants who had gathered to watch the princesses of Arendelle depart, their numbers held back only by a wall of castle guards. The carriage's windows were draped in dark cloth, and Anna could see her elder sister's silhouette already inside of the vehicle. Gerda helped her load her luggage into the back, as Anna was already halfway preoccupied with waving and smiling at the many citizens of her home country. In the end, she had to be ushered in by the chambermaid beside her, who remained just outside of the carriage.

"Aren't you going to come with us, Gerda? At least until we arrive at the school. Please?" she pleaded as she clung to the entryway of the carriage, resisting Gerda's light pushes.

Gerda sighed. "There's much work to be done about this place, princess. I'm needed here."

Anna bit her lip, staying still for a moment before practically lunging onto her chambermaid in a bear hug. "I love you, Gerda!"

Gerda's facial features were softened by a slight smile. "I love you too, girls. Both of you."

Finally, Anna accepted Gerda's light gestures into the carriage, and she sat down in the seat right across from her sister. The door was shut, the horses began their movement, and for the first time in what felt like forever, Anna really got a good, long, straightforward look at her sister.

The girl across from her was unfamiliar but recognizable, crystal clear but deeply elusive. Anna remembered stories of how her parents were certain Elsa's unnaturally light blonde hair would darken as she got older, but there was no evidence of such a change even in the dim carriage lighting. Those blue eyes of hers that were so complimentary of her sister's were focused stiffly on the window, even though the drapes would block any outside imagery. Anna wasn't good at reading faces, and the generally unemotional state of Elsa's features didn't help matters, but Anna was certain there was some emotion playing on the older girl's brow that she didn't want her younger sibling to recognize. More obvious was the smile stuck to her lips, though it didn't seem to match the rest of her face.

"It's good to see you," Anna said quietly, as though anything louder would send the girl across from her into a panic. She gave an encouraging smile, her mood unhampered even by the awkwardness of interacting with Elsa.

Elsa's eyes shifted, though her head turned much less. Even then, her hair didn't move at all, as it was fashioned with care into a perfectly elegant and royal bun. Anna wondered if it was Gerda or Elsa herself who had put her hair that way- Anna knew that Elsa had the gentle touch and careful fingers required to pull it off- and almost didn't register her sister's words through her own thoughts. "It's good to see you too, Anna."

Anna realized she hadn't reacted and blinked dumbly as she refocused. She'd been left alone with her imagination for years, and sometimes it was hard to take herself out of her curiosity in a moment's notice. "Yes. I mean, good. I mean...I'm happy. I'm happy you feel that way," she said, rambling a bit before clearing her throat. "Are you excited?"

Elsa opened her mouth in a snap-second response but held her tongue at the last possible moment, simply nodding with a stiff smile.

Anna scratched at the back of her neck, idly. "You know, I was honestly kind of surprised when I heard you were going to play my cousin."

Elsa raised an eyebrow, arching it at just the right angle to reveal curiosity without condescension. "I am?"

"Aren't you?" Anna asked. She cocked her head to the side, only for her cheek to land on the hand perched against the light blue side wall of the carriage. "That's what Kai told me. That you'll be the cousin who finds the scarf."

Anna could have sworn she saw Elsa's eyes go on the alert at that information, but all too soon they were back to their calm assurance. This slight feature was one that Anna recognized as a defensive maneuver. She'd seen it when her parents would tell her things Anna couldn't quite hear, and even more recently, when one of the castle servants or even the royal adviser himself- who held the post of Arendelle's leadership until one of the daughters was of age- would give Elsa any kind of unwelcome news.

Still, the platinum-haired girl spoke with such a steady assurance that it was though she hadn't shown any instinctive reaction at all. "Well, that's just how Ever After is, I suppose. The details of the fairytale legacy matter aren't entirely clear." Unlike Anna, who was slumped in her feet with a bare foot tapping against the floor, Elsa managed to sit tall and still in her seat.

Anna momentarily envied the other girl's poise and patience, but shook it off as she nodded in agreement. "You bet it is. I'm excited to learn more about it," she admitted, the excited and anxious feeling in her stomach returning with an enduring impatience. "I mean, wow, _real_ fairytales. And our fairytale is only on its second generation. We could be written into history. And what's more, we'll get to make actual _friends_." Anna lifted the very corner of one of the drapes, peeking out. "Doesn't that just sound so exciting?"

"It does sound like a good opportunity," Elsa agreed with a single nod. And her smile was so content, her voice so dignified, that her fearless facade was cemented within the confines of the horse-powered vehicle. At this point, the future Snow Queen's younger sister was none the wiser.

Being stuffed into a six-square-foot space and sitting across from a stranger of a sister for a good number of hours was certainly a harrowing ordeal for both girls, and while Elsa came to learn quite a bit about the sister she'd hid from for so long, Elsa herself remained a terse mystery. She answered whatever questions were asked of her, true- perhaps while omitting some details- though Anna's talkative nature drove her to lead the majority of the conversation, for which Elsa was surprisingly thankful. Anna, on the other hand, grew restless with astounding proficiency, unable to maintain a single sitting position for more than a minute at a time. None of these positions were particularly princess-like, Elsa noted, though she refused to let it bother her. She couldn't let anything bother her, and she most certainly couldn't let it show, especially not in front of her sister.

Anna was oblivious to her sister's tension, and all she saw in the conversation was progress. Finally, Elsa was out of her room long enough to build a real connection. Of course, while Anna was more than happy to lead the dialogue, which occasionally lapsed into more of a monologue than anything, she kept snapping back into question mode in hopes to find out more about the familiar stranger sitting across from her. There were so many things she wanted to ask, and there were quite a few points where the had to spring back out of question mode in fear that she would slip up and ask about one of her more serious inquiries. Anna was about to go on a 'book-to-school' experience, not that she'd ever stepped inside of a school before, and it wasn't time to make her sister's relationship with her further strained with wondering why the pale-haired teen had virtually abandoned her all those years ago.

When all was said and done, both girls were thankful at the sudden stop of the wheels that had been so listlessly churning beneath them. For one, it brought an excited flutter of nerves. For the other, it just peeled off one layer of dread, only to reveal an entire ocean of anxiety churning underneath. Anna was the first to step out the carriage door, and she thrashed her strawberry-blonde-topped head this way and that as she tried to take in the change of scenery with open arms. The smell of something a little fresh and minty and magical flooded her nostrils, accenting the overwhelming stimuli of onlooking students' chatter and the giant school atop the hill which reminded the girl so much of a noble wizard's tower found in a storybook from her childhood.

Elsa came out into the sunlight more slowly, her steps crisp and graceful yet small and reserved. When some nearby students spotted her, their hushed conversations grew considerably in volume and fervor. _Oh, great Odin,_ Elsa pleaded. _Please don't let me already have a reputation._

A tall, imposing, gray-haired man with a noble disposition that matched his cleanly-pressed attire stepped forth. "Greetings, Elsa and Anna of Arendelle," he greeted with a bright, satisfied grin, as though he were already proud of the two girls despite having never seen them in his life. Even his tone was regal, with a small sense of wonder to it that reminded Anna of a storyteller. "I am Headmaster Milton Grimm. Welcome to Ever After High."

"Hello, Headmaster!" Anna greeted, beaming. Leaning over her sister, she whispered, "I didn't know he greeted every student personally."

Elsa gave a subtle roll of her eyes, which Anna deduced as her version of being playful. "It's probably because we've arrived late in the school year," she reasoned.

"Oh. Yeah, that would make sense," Anna admitted, scratching the back of her head sheepishly.

"I would like to advise you two to head straight to the front office to claim your schedules," the Headmaster suggested. "After that, you two may head upstairs to your dorms."

With no other path of guidance, the two girls did as they were told. As they walked up to the front of the school, Elsa could already feel the gazes of some of the other students hot on their tails. She hoped that was simply their normal reaction to new students as opposed to a unique occurrence. At the front, a female troll sat hard at work, the name on her desk labeling her _Ms. Trollsworth, Secretary_.

"Elsa Queen," Trollsworth said murkily, "and Anna Maiden." With each name, she handed the girls their schedules.

Anna raised an eyebrow. "Elsa, why's your last name different than mine?"

Elsa chuckled humorlessly for a moment as she tried to come up with an excuse. "Well yours makes sense because it's in your tale. I guess mine means I'll still be a queen after my role's over with?"

Ms. Trollsworth gave the elder Arendelle princess an odd look from right over her bright pink, wing-tipped glasses, but said nothing.

"Hmm, maybe," Anna agreed, shrugging in neutral acceptance. "This place really does work in strange ways."

Elsa clasped her gloves together as she folded her paper in half, keeping the classes assigned to her obscured from her sister. After all, classes such as General Villainy, Home Evilnomics, and Magicology were certain to raise some flags. It took all her might and years of training in the art of well-meaning deception, but she shrugged, gave a simple, 'well, what can you do?' grin, and nodded her head. "I have a feeling that things are about to get _much_ stranger."

* * *

**A/N: Oh look, some actual EAH characters. Not students, but still.**

**Also, I'm hoping Elsa and Raven's identical surnames won't cause much confusion. After all, there are plenty of unrelated Charmings in the fairytale world- Apple says as much in "Blondie Branches Out". In this case, the Queens aren't any different.**

**Disclaimers: EAH belongs to Mattel.**

**Frozen belongs to Disney.**

******************Thank you for reading! R&amp;R if that is what your True Heart desires.******************


	3. Crackernuts

Merida Crackernuts, daughter of Kate Crackernuts and her prince, had just about had it up to here with her future.

Sure, she was destined to be a heroine. Sure, she was destined to save one of her three younger brothers, all of which were much "prettier" than she. And yes, certainly, she would go on an adventure and get to play around with a fairy. Her ending was happy, and her character was active. By all means, she fit the role well, though she would easily admit that it could stand to involve a few more bows and arrows.

Alas, none of this stopped her prince from being utterly distasteful, nor did it ease the lack of freedom that settled reluctantly in her fingertips. The story didn't end at the same point as the printed copies in the lifairy. After The End, her mother had gone soft, growing accustomed to a feminine and queenly lifestyle. She was not longer the same cunning, rough-and-tumble woman she'd been in her youth. To Merida's mother, it was only natural. To Merida herself, it was a horror story.

She had nightmares of it over and over, replaying in her head. She walked everyday with wannabe matchmakers snapping at her heels. If Macintosh Charming wasn't the right guy for her, surely a certain MacGuffin Charming would do the trick? Or perhaps Dingwall Charming? It made Merida want to tear at that unmanageable, ginger hair of hers until it finally just came out altogether. She and MacGuffin were friends, for will-o-the-wisp's sake, and the teen lass could hardly stand the thought of romancing that other bullheaded blond.

Merida gritted her teeth as she listened to her mother's too-proper, stuffy, _nagging_ voice from the other side of her MirrorPhone. Queen Kate Crackernuts had only called to check up on her daughter on her first day as a second-year student, but it seemed that yet another comment about meeting up with her future beloved and her expectations as a future ruler had spiraled into the latest of a hundred long-winded arguments.

"You are a princess," the Queen reiterated. "A perfect princess. This is to be hexpected."

"Hexpected? What's _hexpected_, mother? That I marry some stuck-up prick for the sake of a book?" the redheaded girl asked incredulously, her Scottish accent even thicker than that of her mother.

"Merida Crackernuts of Scotland," Kate said sharply. "You were raised better than this. Why can't you just listen?"

Merida grimaced, her cheeks puffing out red like some sort of defense tactic. Oh, so _she_ was the one having trouble listening, now. She had to gnaw on the insides of her mouth to keep herself from speaking out, instead plopping onto her bed with a huff. She'd at least gotten the opportunity to decorate her own room- her mother couldn't be that controlling even if she wanted to- but the decor itself was still tainted by something a little too regal.

Kate sighed audibly. "Dear, I know how you must be feeling, but you must do this. It's your destiny. Everything's waiting for you; all you really have to do is sign a book."

"All that you just said," Merida murmured, quietly at first, "tells me that you know nothing about how I'm feeling! It may be easy for you to say. You love dad, and dad loves you. I have to do more than sign a book, mum. I have to be like _you_, like how you became after The End, and that's the one thing I will never do." Exasperated, Merida let her head fall back onto her pillow, though her body was still tense, her thoughts still unsettled. "Who's to say that I even want to marry a boy?"

"Merida, don't be ridicul-"

The phone was silent. Merida's thumb was still pressed roughly against the spot where an "end call" button had been moments ago, though now there was only her home screen.

Of course her mother wouldn't understand. Why would anyone understand? Merida didn't want kids, which was the pinnacle of any good fairytale romance. Merida didn't want to become a queen, though she was the only one legally able to fulfill her role. Merida didn't even want to end up with a guy, much less a prince, and that really wasn't something that any of her classmates would be able to wrap their heads around. Isn't that why she'd kept it a secret for so long? They'd be freaked out. They'd start overanalyzing every innocent gesture. Merida wasn't perfect, and she sure as hex didn't want to have to be.

It was in that moment that the teen realized what she'd just said to her mother. Her face blank, she set the MirrorPhone aside. Oh Grimm, what would her mother suspect? _Idiot. Idiot, Merida,_ the Scottish girl thought to herself, gripping her bright orange locks at the scalp with one hand as the other pressed itself against her face.

Merida heard the door to the dorm room open, though she didn't think she'd left it unlocked. Oh, well. She probably had in today's flurry of uncharacteristic stupidity. She could only hope that it wasn't Ashlynn, or Darling, or- Grimm forbid- a _staff member_...

"Um...hello, there," the intruder said after a long moment, her voice as unrecognizable as her dainty footsteps. Merida forced open the eyes she'd been unconsciously squeezing shut, snapping into an alarmed sitting position. The first thing that came to her attention was white hair, not Darling-white but near to it, followed by eyes only slightly off-color from tap water. Freckles were engraved astonishingly lightly into pale, plump cheeks, and those icy eyes, framed by thick lashes, looked directly into the blue-surrounded pupils of Merida. Oh, great. First she hinted to her mom that she wasn't straight, and now the universe had sent her a criminal trespasser in the form of a pretty girl around her age.

Merida snapped out of that bitter line of thinking and sunk into a new one upon seeing the sheet of paper in the other girl's hands. Oh, right. This girl was probably just her roommate. The redhead sat up, legs kicking her sheets into a mess as she struggled into a half-decent greeting position.

"Merida...Crackernuts?" the blonde dame inquired, reading the name from the stark white page, its surface unmarred by all but one long, purposeful crease. Merida nodded, her ridiculously voluminous and untamed curls bobbing up and down a bit even as the motion of her head ended. The other girl held out a hand padded by a white glove. "Enchanted to meet you," she announced, the slight nerves in her otherwise icy tone betraying quite the opposite. "I am Princess Elsa of Arendelle."

"Merida's the name. Formal introductions's not the game," Merida said finally, standing up. After holding up her hand for a moment too long, she shook the pale glove of the girl who was Elsa. Maybe she gripped a little too hard and moved a little too eagerly, but she could have sworn she felt a layer of something very cold beneath the thick fabric. In fact, it sent a bit of a chill up the Scottish princess's spine, and she pulled back just as animatedly as she'd offered. "They told me you'd be a snow queen," she said with a trace of a grin, "but they didn't tell me the room would drop some degrees."

Elsa, having not noticed she'd begun to blend a marked chill into the dorm's atmosphere, tucked her own hands into each other, taking a step back. Her eyes widened as the temperature managed to drop just a little more, forcing Merida to shiver, but soon the effect faded, albeit slowly. "Apologies," said Elsa. "I wasn't aware that you knew."

Merida quirked a brow, crossing her arms partly from the chill and partly out of inquiry. "That I knew? Everyone knows, Princess. It's not every day that one of the bigger classics like The Snow Queen come along," she informed. "In fact, I know of one Frostball who's been waiting for you to come over and test your magic."

"Everyone knows," Elsa repeated to herself. That would only make hiding her true nature from Anna that much harder. She hadn't stopped to think that Ever After High may not be so confidential when it comes to which destiny goes to what student. The blonde steadied herself in resolve. She would simply have to try harder. She would come up with excuses. She would make this work, because she had no other choice. A small, sad smile played on her lips, perfect for the moment being. "I see. Well, please send this 'Frostball' my regrets, but I'm not looking for a challenge."

"Yeah, good luck with that," Merida replied, a knowing look in her offset gaze. "When Jack wants a competition, he'll find one way or another to get it. He'll want to meet you, at the least." She made her way over to her personal desk, pulling the skirt of her dress down. The fabric could never fall down far enough, it seemed, and the space it left for her legs to rub up against each other just didn't seem very functional. Now _pants_, those had meaning. Why didn't any of the girls at this school seem to have any want for pants?

The girl picked up a picture of herself nestled between two others. The first was a girl with unbelievably long hair and a sunny grin, one hand on Merida's shoulder and the other wrapped around a frying pan. The second was a girl with white hair that was piled high on her head, a sassy smile accompanied by half-lidded eyes and an overall smug ferocity. There were others in the picture, too. Merida pointed at one in particular: a white-haired guy with a dark blue hoodie and an ornamental staff, unable to take even one decent picture without bunny-earring the student standing next to him. "This is him. And right next to him is Rapunzel, a first-year- named after _the_ Rapunzel, which is kind of strange since that's not her story. And then there's Darling, who's...well, she's something."

Elsa nodded, looking over from her suitcase. She'd already started unpacking. She seemed to hear Merida's words and grasp their basic meaning, but she was also incredibly occupied, mostly in her own mind. She turned back quickly enough, pulling out various garments: blue dresses, blue skirts, blue leggings, blue shoes. Everything was drowning in blues of various shades with the exception of the outfit the girl was already wearing, a black-and-violet piece that looked much too formal for everyday wear.

"You sure like blue, don't you lass?"

"Yes."

Merida fell silent, staring at the picture for a long second or so. She then put it down, sighing quietly. This girl before her had suddenly transformed into something that most definitely wasn't a talker. Maybe she just wasn't good at speaking past introductions. Maybe Merida was just starting to get annoying. Whatever the case, the redheaded girl shrugged to herself.

In the dorms hallway beyond the door, a girl screamed.

Another shouted, "_Off with your head!_"

Metal clanged against something hard and thick.

And yet, Elsa didn't turn her head. Merida just sighed once more, chin on her palm. "Man, you're not going to survive three days here."

Merida had only half-expected that her mutterings would be heard, but almost to her surprise, the blonde lifted her head. "What do you mean?"

Merida's mouth quirked into a half-smile of sorts as she went over to the door, taking the knob. "Oh, it's nothing, doll," she denied, sluggishly cracking open the door. Looking at the sight that stood right outside, her eyes lit up with a kind of expected humor, yet her brows furrowed. "Welcome to Ever After High."

* * *

**Disclaimers: EAH belongs to Mattel.**

**Frozen, Brave, and Tangled all belong to Disney.**

**Rise of the Guardians belongs to DreamWorks as far as I'm aware.**

**Thank you for reading! R&amp;R if that is what your True Heart desires.**


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